That Long Awaited Solo
Trip...
Sabrina Andrea Sachs
M
y name is Sabrina and I’m a former corporate ladder climber
turned digital storyteller and full-time traveller in 2015. That
year, I left my former life in London, sold most of my possessions,
packed a 14kg bag and set off to explore the world while pursuing my
childhood passions for writing and photography. After a brief stop in
the UAE, I spent three months travelling around India before moving
to Australia where I lived for 10 months and then hit the road again to
go to New Zealand, the Pacific islands and later moved to south east
Asia where I lived for 6 months.
I never thought I could travel alone. Even though I left my hometown
and moved abroad at the age of 23, travelling alone was something that
really scared me. Before embarking on this 20-month journey around
the world, I had only been alone on business trips, long weekend
exploring Europe or relaxed solo beach holidays on the shores of Spain
or Greece. I never believed I had what it takes to endure a solitary
exploration around the world, but time proved me wrong and I truly
enjoyed my time alone exploring our beautiful planet. I’ve been asked
to share with you a few secrets, tips and tricks that I’ve learnt from my
experience and so let’s start with the basics.
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Whenever you are travelling, remember to always carry a passport
with at minimum 6 months of validity. Also, make sure to check
the visa requirements of the country you are heading to far in
advance. My essentials include my camera, my smartphone, my
reading tablet, my battery pack, a headlight, a pen and a journal
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and a silk sheet. Since I work online as a marketing strategist and
storyteller, I always carry my laptop with me.
Talking about safety, remember that there are some dangers
everywhere in the world, especially for female solo travellers.
For this reason, during my time on the road, I avoided going
to certain roads or neighbourhoods alone after dark; I also
respected the dress code of the country I was visiting and made
sure I was always alert and aware if I was going to an area I wasn’t
familiar with. Remember to keep your credit cards separate from
your cash or at least make sure to hide your valuables in different
places so that if you get robbed you don’t lose everything. Also,
don’t walk around playing on your smartphone and never leave
your bags unattended.
I truly enjoy travelling alone, but it can be quite tiring sometimes.
Most people think that travelling is a walk in the park because
they only see the final destinations, without considering what's in
between. They forget the entire part of the preparation, planning,
booking, checking and comparing as well as physically moving
from one place to the next which sometimes included 26 hours
bus ride or a 12 hour flight delay. If you are travelling alone, all of
this is upon you only and you can’t rely on anybody else for that or
other small things like to look after your bags while you check the
time of the train at the station or someone to buy a bottle of water
while you load the bus/car. Let’s just say that for certain practical